Edwin Moses, Boris Becker and Other Sports Legends To Ring Opening Bell at New York Stock Exchange

NEW YORK, March 17 -- Legendary athletes Edwin Moses, Boris Becker and other members of the Laureus World Sports Academy, joined by five-time Olympic Gold Medallist Michael Johnson, will accompany Paul Halata, President and CEO of Mercedes-Benz USA, LLC., to ring the opening bell at the New York Stock Exchange tomorrow morning.

Other members of the Laureus World Sports Academy who will participate include Emerson Fittipaldi, Daley Thompson, Bobby Charlton, Ilie Nastase, Sebastian Coe, Kip Keino, Robby Naish, Morne du Plessis, Hugo Porta, Kapil Dev and Nawal El Moutawakel. This legendary group of athletes is in New York for four days of activities in support of the Laureus Sport for Good Foundation and will be announcing the 2002 Nominations for the Laureus World Sports Awards on Tuesday March 19.

Following the ringing of the bell at the NYSE, Moses, Becker and other members of the Academy will be visiting Ground Zero to pay their respects to those who perished in the September 11 tragedy. Later in the day, they will help kick-off a partnership between the Laureus Sport for Good Foundation and the Inner City Games Foundation in New York and will play a celebrity basketball game in support of the Midnight Basketball League Virginia and Laureus Sport for Good Foundation.

The Laureus Sport for Good Foundation is a charitable venture created by the Founding Patrons of the Laureus World Sports Awards: DaimlerChrysler and Richemont. The heart and soul of the Foundation is the Laureus World Sports Academy, a dedicated ``dream team'' of 42 of the world's most legendary sportsmen and women, who have all agreed to volunteer their time in an effort to recognize the powerful role that sport plays in our society.

Brought together to help identify and consult upon appropriate projects for funding, these world-renowned athletes are also global ambassadors for the Foundation's work. The Academy also presides over the Laureus World Sports Awards, an annual ceremony dedicated to recognizing the power of sport to change people's lives and to honoring sporting excellence.